Project Details
Projekt
Designer Doped Semiconductors for Neuromorphic Bioelectronics
Applicant
Professor Dr. Pascal Friederich
Subject Area
Polymer Materials
Computer-Aided Design of Materials and Simulation of Materials Behaviour from Atomic to Microscopic Scale
Synthesis and Properties of Functional Materials
Methods in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
Computer-Aided Design of Materials and Simulation of Materials Behaviour from Atomic to Microscopic Scale
Synthesis and Properties of Functional Materials
Methods in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
Term
since 2025
Project identifier
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 565912470
The NeuroTronics project aims to develop a new type of doped organic mixed ionic-electronic conductors (OMIECs) that are optimized for neuromorphic bioelectronics, a technology that will transform healthcare, computing, robotics and enable seamless human-AI and human-machine interactions through bioelectronic interfacing. Doped OMIEC materials and their devices offer the only viable path to achieving the seamless biological integration necessary for nervous system interfacing. However, a critical gap exists in developing doped OMIECs with tunable electronic properties that can be retained under mixed ionic-electronic transport and repeated ion insertion cycling. To address this challenge, NeuroTronics will develop a closed-loop design framework that integrates multiscale materials theory, machine learning, and AI-driven experimentation. The project will iteratively design doped OMIECs meeting stringent electronic, ionic, stability, manufacturability, and toxicity requirements. This will be achieved through three interconnected Work Packages: WP1: Design of polaron-optimized materials via doping to tune free charge carrier population. WP2: Develop precisely doped OMIECs with stability under ionic and thermal stress. WP3: Engineer manufacturable, scalable, and non-toxic doped OMIECs for commercial application. Key contributions of the NeuroTronics project include: (1) Advancing theoretical frameworks for polaron formation, mixed transport, and process-structure-property relationships, integrating first-principles simulations with experimental validation. (2) Establishing fundamental design principles for doping organic semiconductors to optimize electronic properties while ensuring long-term stability. (3) Development of an integrated theory- & AI-guided materials design loop, significantly reducing the R&D cycle for OMIECs, that relies on the Bayesian optimization for robust local optima via new acquisition functions. The acquisition function balances the objective function with its response to processing or design variable changes. This advancement is critical for the stringent ~10% variability requirement for thin-film transistors. (4) Creating scalable and sustainable fabrication methods, bridging the gap between fundamental research and real-world application.
DFG Programme
Research Grants
International Connection
Saudi Arabia, USA
